May 19, 2002 By Mike Ciarochi 2 min read

For Terrance Vaughns, it wasn’t a tough decision after all. The All-State basketball player from Uniontown decided to stay close to home and save some money when he accepted a full scholarship to Clarion University.

Vaughns, who scored 1,720 career points, chose Division II Clarion over Bucknell, a Patriot League Division I-AA program.

“First of all, it was free,” Vaughns said of his decision. “Secondly, it’s close enough for my family to come and see me play.”

Clarion competes in the PSAC and plays annually at conference opponent California University, meaning Vaughns will get at least one game every season on what has become a very familiar floor to him.

Vaughns’ Red Raiders played at least one playoff game at Cal’s Hamer Hall in each of the last three seasons. Uniontown beat Central Catholic at Hamer this season, en route to a WPIAL Class AAAA title, but it was a game from his sophomore season at Hamer Hall that provided Vaughns’ greatest memory of his illustrious high school career.

“It’s really tough to pick one, because we won a lot of games through the years,” Vaughns said. “But I’d have to say the Schenley game is most memorable to me. We had just lost to Penn Hills and Schenley was ranked No. 1 in the state at the time. No one gave us much of a chance to win that game, but we just didn’t give up. Plus, being on the foul line to win the game helps, too.”

It was in that game that Vaughns, then a sophomore, began forging a reputation for sinking free throws with the game on the line. He hit two free throws to lift the Red Raiders to a 71-70 win over the Spartans.

Another reason Vaughns chose Clarion is that he is more likely to play as a freshman than he would have been in Division I or I-AA.

“They didn’t say I would come in and start, but I will get playing time,” Vaughns said. “I believe I can come in and start for them.”

Clarion is coached by Ron Righter. Assistant coach Al Modrejewski recruited Vaughns.